We’re heading through Guatemala, back to the Belize border. The road is half pavement, half pothole, so all the sleeping heads keep madly wagging around as the van dodges and bounces around them. The sleeping is mostly not from normal tiredness, it’s from anti diarrhea and carsick medication and possibly the E. coli medication that three of us are on. Yes, “the regulars” fell sick again. Me and my two boys. Thankfully mine was a non debilitating variant, but poor Zach has spent most of our two days in Guatemala in his hotel room. Forrest is dragging around with us to the various sites, but if there is a seat or bench or stump, he is on it. It’s all rather annoying and reminds me once again why I have lost my love of traveling to undeveloped countries. Although I’m actually suspicious we got it from drinking river water in Belize. Why drink river water you ask? Because sometimes when you cast yourself into a river from a great height, water somehow finds its way in. I now have days of catch up to write, so here goes.
Monday, the day of exploring the jungles not far from the house. Pine Ridge Nature Reserve to be exact. For devotions that morning I read in Isaiah, “when though passest through the waters I will be with you” and I took it to heart. Today was the day of Big Rock Falls. The day where brave, or stupid, people leap off rocks into a deep waterfall pool. The day Jeanie has marked for a year that she will actually do it. Will actually leap off a high rock and cast herself into the water. It’s something that has terrified me forever. I hate leaping off things. Well, I don’t mind the idea of jumping so much as how on earth do you hit the water? But my cup of determination was full and I was gonna do it. No matter what.
The path to the falls is down steep wooden stairs and muddy paths. At the bottom you pop out by a rushing river and the spectacular view of the Big Rock Falls. The rocks were ferociously slippery and we all struggled to stay upright as we skidded around to the first medium height leaping rocks. Once we had all conquered those it was time to swim to the inner pool and the big bad rocks with the sketchy climb up. The good thing was that you knew you couldn’t really climb down. You had to jump. And jump I did! My knees were shaking so bad and my heart was pounding, but with everyone shouting encouragements and finally counting me off, I did it! So of course I had to do it again. Zach wasn’t sure he had seen correctly. He really couldn’t believe I had got brave enough. Frankly, I couldn’t either. About that time a massive rain storm moved through and we were just as wet out of the water as in. The water fall picked up volume and I desperately tried to keep my backpack dry by holding giant leaves over it. It mostly worked! Eventually we slipped our way back up the hill and headed off to Rio Frio Cave.
That place is awesome! Like straight out of a lost world awesome. When the huge entrance suddenly appears in the jungle with a river flowing out, long roots dangling down and enormous vines draping around, your jaw does literally drop. Pictures don’t even begin to do it justice. I looked all over online and even the best photographers can’t capture it. You definitely needed lights to walk through as the floor had some pretty big unexpected holes in it. We climbed around on the rocks, marveled at a perfectly round water spout carved into the rock by nature and watched the bats. Right outside the cave was a perfect big vine looped down forming a swing that was exhilarating for adults and a total delight for Caspian. All together one of our favorite stops on the trip
Luck smiled on us as we continued through the Reserve, this time sending a big tapur our way. They are apparently a very rare sight and we got up right close and personal. They are huge! I thought they would be the size of a dog but no way! Think pig/hippo/cow. That was special.
Supper was at D’s Family Restaurant, a local eatery with outdoor seating and delicious food! I seem to always want the stew chicken, beans and rice, but the others branched out more.
Man we’re glad for air conditioning at night! This heat and humidity are next level! Andy put out some bread for the birds at the house and the jays made such a racket over it a flock of toucans came to check it out. In some ways there’s not as many birds around as we expected. Or animals for that matter. I guess there’s so much jungle the noises are muffled and creatures can hide.
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